Police went on high alert after the threats on Aug. 3 because they came after the slayings of police officers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Dallas. Those, in turn, had followed fatal police shootings of black men in Minnesota and Louisiana.

The threats led to the evacuation of the Cumberland County Courthouse because of its proximity to the police headquarters in Portland, along with a parking garage on Newbury Street, both of which were mentioned in the threats.

His emails said: “Time for more police to die. We are getting our Sig Sauer MCX .223-caliber rifles ready, and very soon, my partners will head down to Portland Police Department on 109 Middle St. There they will shoot and kill as many police officers as they can. Meanwhile, I will get into position at the top of Cumberland County Parking Garage on 188 Newbury St. I have booby trapped the garage with explosives, so don’t go there. Time to take action. More dead cops.”

Police searched the garage with bomb-sniffing dogs and found no explosives.

The emails were traced to Brungodt’s Portland hotel room, where he was arrested a few hours after sending the threats. He had been in the U.S. with his family on a nine-day vacation from their home in Bergen, Norway, and had been scheduled to leave the day after he sent the threats.

Hornby, who sentenced Brungodt, said the email contained a “brutal threat of violence and death that resulted in complete disruption of public services and instilled public fear.”

But Hornby noted that Brungodt had a history of mental health problems and no criminal record, factors that argued for a lesser sentence than the five years and fine of $250,000 that he could have imposed.

Here at MaineToday Media we value our readers and are committed to growing our community by encouraging you to add to the discussion.

To ensure conscientious dialogue we have implemented a strict no-bullying policy. To participate, you must follow our Terms of Use. Click here to flag and report a comment that violates our terms of use.